10.15.2012

Confessions of a First Time Mom

Travis tells me I need to lighten up, but can I get an "Amen" from my sisters with young babies who try to go out in public and end up wishing you had just stayed inside in your pj's that you've been wearing for the past three days cuddling with your tiny babe?!

Let me just say, nursing a newborn full-time is hard...nursing a newborn in public is down-right impossible! And when you've got Miss Sloppy McGee as your daughter, it is out of the question to try to be graceful about it. This child has to wear a bib already! Plus I have to place a burp cloth under her in order to keep us both relatively dry. Maybe it's my fault, maybe the milk comes too fast for her, but in the end does it really matter who's to blame when both mother and child are dripping wet after every feeding? The nursing cover helps...kind of...not really at all. It's a two man job if you want to stay modest, and like I said, relatively dry. Travis has been a trooper when it comes to feeding time but I still freak out inside just waiting for that one nincompoop to come up to me and tell me how inappropriate I am for nursing while they try to enjoy their caramel latte on the other side of the Starbucks. Or for that moment when my boob pops out in front of the 8 year old boy while his mom stands by in disgust. Don't even think about sitting near a door lest a slight breeze may whip that cover off you so quickly your baby will be embarrassed for you! So my only solution to being modest and dry in public is this: make sure I have a pumped bottle with me everywhere I go or go out in increments of every 2 1/2 to 3 hours. Ahh, the life of a mother of a newborn.

Don't ever leave the house without an extra outfit, plenty of diapers, and a butt-load of wipes (pun intended). We've been lucky enough to follow these principles--well at least the first and second; the third we had an incident at Starbucks last week where we ran out of wipes--not good! Our baby is known for peeing and pooping at the same time while the old diaper is off and you're just about to lay the new one under her. We've learned to put the new diaper under before taking the old off just so the new one can catch whatever may come. Even then, it doesn't stop that gallon of pee to make its way up her back soaking her outfit or the projectile poop to hit daddy's hand. But it does give you a better assurance that you won't have as big of a mess to clean. When we were at Starbucks last week the time came to change Anna's diaper--after trying to nurse (remember the paragraph before? Downright impossible, I tell ya!). Thankfully the women's bathroom had a changing table. I laid Anna down on her disposable changing pad and began to get to work. As I was switching out diapers, I quickly realized I may have been a little too eager to change her because she not only peed but managed to squirt out some poop, all the while someone began knocking on the door! They must not of heard me say someone is in here! or heard Anna's cries because they knocked 5 more times; hello!! Lady with a baby here!!! The pee doused her new diaper and also went up her back drenching her too cute outfit I was very proud of picking out earlier that day. As I tried to regain control of the situation I realized I only had one more baby wipe to clean up the mess! Too many things were happening all at once, Travis wasn't there to help like he could've so easily at home, and on top of it all Anna was crying and began moving up the table only to hit her head a few times on the end. Somehow the lone baby wipe got the job done. I finally got a fresh diaper on her (the last one I had) and her new outfit (not as cute as the first) and jetted out of the bathroom. That's not the end of the story. After recounting to Travis what just took place I finally was able to enjoy drink my luke-warm salted caramel hot chocolate, not before spilling a bit down Anna's back, and yes, onto the new outfit I just changed her into, making it look like she pooped on that outfit too. Thank God my hot chocolate was luke-warm, but gee golly can we have just one more thing happen?! It'd really make this story that much better, eh?! By that time I was just ready to throw in the towel and call it a day. Travis let me and I walked away wishing and praying going out in public only gets easier..other Mama's out there, please tell me it gets easier!

Anna's cues for when she's working on something, i.e. don't change diaper until grunts and funny faces have ceased.



6 comments:

  1. Haha! So many memories come back to me... and it DOES get easier. Don't be afraid to adjust your outtings so they work for this period of life, it's not forever, in fact it's only a couple months at most before things get drastically easier. By the time you get to your second you'll be such a pro you'll be walking around starbucks with baby attached to the boob and you won't even care if the eight year old sees your boobie (by then you realize his mama had to do the same exact thing with him and now she has a fantabulous chance to explain what those things are for!). And I totally understand the drenched phenomena... I think Aiden and I were consistently soaked in milk/spit up for about 3 months. Motherhood = trial, error, and lots of poop and pee before, after, and in between.

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  2. Haha! Kind of new follower and first time commenter. I'm pregnant with my third and let me tell you, IT GETS EASIER! I remember all that with our first. Unfortunately for me, my husband was in Afghanistan when our first was born so I had no help. I also found it impossible to nurse in public and kept a bottle with me. But let me warn you, it's a slippery slope. The more embarrassed I was about nursing around people, the more I used a bottle (and formula). Eventually, I just gave up and regret it to this day. Now with our second, I nursed EVERYWHERE without a bottle. Just keep doing it and in no time, you won't even bat an eye about nursing in public. Just remember, you're both extremely new at this and it will get better and it WILL get easier!

    Now, as far as those diaper changes.... That never changes. :) you just learn to stay calm and roll with the punches.

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  3. Also a new follower and first time commenter but I had to jump in on this one:
    IT WILL GET EASIER! I promise. Nursing a baby is all I felt I ever did after the birth of both my daughters. As special of a time as it was, I was exhausted. And yes, going out in public is a ridiculous event that requires more forethought than hosting Thanksgiving dinner for your whole family. But eventually, you will so get the hang of things, baby wont need to nurse all the time, and by 8 weeks she'll probably be going #2 only once or twice a day. It's lovely :) Keep up the good work though Mama. He sees your efforts!

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  4. My daughter Grace is 3 weeks old, born 9/25, so I can totally relate! Every time I leave my house, I wonder why I thought it was a good idea to get out of my pajamas!!! It is so easy nursing at home (as frequently as hourly!!!) and never having to worry about offending or flashing innocent people! I guess I have to just get a little more confident about nursing in public. I love that other commenters said it gets easier and I anxiously await the day!! Good Luck!!!

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    1. Oh and one more thing - after many feedings Grace and I are both soaked.. I spoke with a lactation consultant from my local La Leche League and she watched me nurse... she said it is because my milk comes out to fast and Grace can't swallow it fast enough. So until we are more in sync... I will be layering baby blankets under her in an attempt to reduce the crazy loads of laundry we are already doing!

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  5. It is getting easier, and funnier. Just wait until she can move around and tries to run away from the changing table as soon as she feels fresh air on her naked bottom.
    If someone minds me breastfeeding in a public I tell them: "If my breastfeeding bothers you that means you were staring for too long".

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